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Undergraduate Information


COMS 530 - Internship

Purpose
An internship provides opportunities to learn about and participate in the communication of a "real world" organization, (especially one that does excellent work in a profession you might enter after graduating) and to apply knowledge and skills gained in your COMS coursework.
General Description
You will arrange, for your internship, to work for an organization and be "mentored" by a qualified and committed supervisor. Like all business arrangements, an internship is an exchange. You will provide that organization with your time, energy, common sense, and all the knowledge and abilities you have developed so far. In return, you will receive opportunities to observe activities, gain information and skills, try your hand at meeting challenges, demonstrate what you have to offer, "network" in that professional milieu, and receive feedback that wouldn't otherwise be available to you.

Requirements and Conditions

  1. Our interns represent to the people they contact all COMS students and faculty. Consequently, serving as an intern is an honor and a trust available only to students who meet these qualifications:
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    1. Prior acceptance as a COMS major via the Undergraduate Committee’s application process

    2. Prior completion of at least 15 hours in COMS
    3. GPA of 3.0 or above in COMS courses

    4. Endorsement of the internship by Dr. Michael Dennis, the COMS 530 coordinator, via the completed Internship Plan and initialed Letter to Prospective Internship Supervisors

  2. Enrolled students will be required to:
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    1. Fulfill the responsibilities arranged with the organization for which they work

    2. Write a term paper describing and analyzing their internship experience.

  3. Students may enroll for a maximum total of 3 hours of 530 credit that may be split between multiple internships.

  4. Students must arrange their own internship placements. The COMS Department does not maintain internships to distribute and believes that securing one is a valuable experience for our students.

  5. Students cannot use their COMS internship to fulfill internship requirements in another department, and vice-versa, nor can they intern under a family member's supervision. Internships are NOT suitable contexts for COMS 499, Directed Study in Communication Studies.

  6. Students' minimum time commitment to the internship organization is 40 hours per academic credit, (i.e. 120 hours for three credits).

  7. COMS 530 enrollment requires prior permission by the course coordinator (Dr. Dennis). Permission is contingent upon his approval of the completed Internship Plan and the fully initialed Letter to Prospective Internship Supervisors (included in the COMS 530 Internship in Communication Studies packet available in Bailey 102).

Arranging an Internship

  1. Start this process several months before the beginning of the semester in which you want to enroll in COMS 530. Obtain and read the COMS 530 Internship in Communication Studies packet available in Bailey 102.

  2. If you can't manage any of the steps outlined below on your own, feel free to contact Dr. Dennis for advice (make that contact after you have read all the attached material).

  3. Decide upon the kind of organization in which you want to work (preferably in a profession you might enter after graduation).

  4. Identify a particular organization of that type. The University Placement Center keeps some internship opportunities on file.

  5. Contact someone in that organization, and ask who there can help you arrange an internship experience. Explain what you have in mind, based upon your reading of this material.

  6. Make an appointment to meet with the individual you've identified, and discuss what your "exchange of services" might be. Explain what you'd like to learn, and propose what you are willing to do for the organization, or ask what they would expect of you. Share the Letter to Prospective Internship Supervisors and get it initialed.

  7. Elicit at this meeting, several options for what you might do in your internship. Fill out the Internship Plan together. Explain that Dr. Dennis must approve whatever plans you make before you can gain credit for your work and that you may need a revised Plan signed as well as the current one.

  8. Get your permission to enroll from Dr. Dennis, and you're on your way! (Because so many steps are involved, you are reminded again to make these arrangements well in advance. Enroll & Pay will prohibit you from enrolling in COMS 530 without a Special Permission number or signature from the course coordinator.)

*REMINDER: To receive approval to enroll in COMS 530, you must bring to Dr. Dennis:

  1. the "Internship Plan''

  2. the "Letter to Prospective Internship Supervisors" initialed in seven places